Review - Winterblaze (Darkest London, Book 3) by Kristen Callihan (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Size: 448 pages
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: February 26, 2013
ISBN: 978-1455520794
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in the Darkest London series
Source: Borrowed from Library
Rating: 5/5 stars

This is the third book in the Darkest London series and features the third of three sisters, Poppy. The fourth book in this series will be titled Shadowdance, and is scheduled for a November 2013 release. This book was absolutely fantastic; the characters and plot were incredibly well done and engaging.

Poppy has always been the most resourceful of the three sisters. After all her secrets were revealed to Winston in the second book, Moonlight, her marriage to Winston ended up on the rocks. Little does Poppy know Winston has secrets of his own. With a dangerous demon on the loose; Poppy needs to fill her role as a member of the SOS and hunt it down. When Winston gets pulled into the action, Poppy and Winston are forced to face each other and try to reconcile the new people they have become to each other.

This was an absolutely stunning continuation of this series. Not only does this book have an absolutely action packed and engaging plot, but Poppy and Winston are entrancing. The scenes between them sizzle and they are such interesting and complex characters.

Poppy has been part of the SOS (Society for the Suppression of Supernaturals) since she was little. When the secret of this comes out she is devastated. When Winstone leaves her she is even worse off. Not only is her family angry at her secrets, her husband has abandoned her too. In this book we see a side of Poppy we have never seen in previous stories. Poppy is a warrior and incredibly intelligent, she is so much more complex than we were lead to believe in past books. Poppy’s one shortcoming is her inability to trust, and it was entrancing to watch her work through this issue with Winston.

Winstone has always seemed like the upright lawman in previous books. In this book we are introduced to a leaner and meaner Winston; he returns to the story covered in werewolf scars and much tougher from his months spent training to learn new fighting styles. This is a more dangerous Winston, as Winston’s own secrets are revealed he becomes a character that matches Poppy in complexity.

When Poppy and Winston are together in a scene it sizzles with tension and heat. They’ve been married forever, but they each have to relearn the other person because of all the changes and challenges they have recently faced. It was fun to read about a married couple who love each other with so much passion.

The plot was also fantastic. There is an old and dangerous demon on the loose and Poppy must figure out how to hunt him down and deal with him. When it comes to light that this demon may be involved in Winston’s past as well; Poppy and Winston realize they must face him side by side. There are lots of wonderful action scenes, a heavy element of investigation, and interesting paranormal danger throughout.

The story wraps up well and makes for a very satisfying read. The Epilogue gives a brief lead in to the next book which will feature Mary Chase and Jack Talent.

I would like to state that I absolutely hate the cover of this book, it does not do either the characters or the story justice!

Overall this was an enthralling story and I had a lot of trouble putting it down. This story was a perfect blend of action packed paranormal danger and sizzling romance. Callihan does an excellent job of balancing plot, action, and romance. This whole paranormal series is high recommended to those who like action packed urban fantasy with a large dash of sizzling romance.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- 150+ Reading Challenge
- DEMONS: Paranormal Reading Challenge

Early Review - Moonglow (Darkest London, Book 2) by Kristen Callihan (4.5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Size: 432 pages
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: July 31, 2012
ISBN-13: 978-1455508587
Stand Alone or Series: 2nd book in the Darkest London series
Source: eGalley through Netgalley.com
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

I got an advanced reading copy of this book to review through NetGalley(dot)com. I absolutely adored Firelight and was eager to see what Callihan would come up with next. This was a fun read, Callihan does an excellent job of blending sizzling romance with a solid story and an intriguing world.

This book is about Miranda’s sister Daisy. It’s been a year since Daisy’s horrible abusive husband has died and Daisy is finally free to stop mourning. Daisy wants to get back to living and on her first night out as a single woman encounters a horrible murdering werewolf in the ally. Ian Ranulf rescues her and is drawn to Daisy in a way he hasn’t been drawn to a woman in ages. Together can they solve the mystery of this murdering were and stop him from brutally slaughtering other women?

This is a very adult read; lots of violence and lots of sex...not ever together though. Callihan is very good at writing both the fighting scenes and the love scenes; she seriously writes some of the best love scenes I have ever read.

The characters are very well done. Daisy is a strong woman who has been harshly abused; but rather than let it tear her apart, she is doing her best to become the woman she wants to be. She is one of those women you can’t help but admire because she seems so lovely and soft on the outside but has a core of steel. Daisy ends up having some special powers of her own that were intriguing.

Ian Ranulf, is a character that most of us hated in the first book. In this book you learn so much more about him. He is a lycan and has lived a long time, as such he has a very complicated past. It was fun to learn more about him and learn what really lay beneath his foppish exterior.

Even though the characters are well done they don’t even begin to touch Miranda and Archer. Those two were just too interesting, too creative, and had such incredible chemistry that they can’t be topped. Ian and Daisy do develop a sweet relationship that is based on trust (at least as much trust as you can build over the short time period covered in this book). It is very much a protective alpha male guarding his true love kind of thing though. This is something that us paranormal fans have read before and it is kind of a typical relationship to see in these types of books.

The world created in this series is incredibly well done. The world grows in complexity in this book. We find more about where Daisy and her sisters got their strange powers. We also find out Poppy is part of a secret organization called the SOS (Suppression of Supernaturals). Additionally we are introduced to GIMs (Ghost in the Machine) which are an absolutely fascinating type of creature that I am dying to learn more about.

I also oved how Callihan handled lycan society and how weres are distinctly different form lycans. Shapeshifters were also thrown into the story. This are just so many interesting things in this world and I am dying to learn more about it.

Overall an excellent novel. I didn’t enjoy Daisy and Ian as much as Miranda and Archer; this book didn’t have the gothic overtone to it that Firelight did. But Daisy and Ian are still well done characters. The love scenes and story are incredibly well done, and the plot and world that backs up the story is fascinating. The world is growing in complexity and I am dying to learn more about some of the fascinating creatures introduced in this novel.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- Horror and Urban Fantasy Challenge
- 150+ Books Reading Challenge

Short Story Review - Ember: Prequel to Firelight (Darkest London series) by Kristen Callihan (4/5 stars)

Reading level: Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Size: 278 KB
Publisher: Forever Yours
Release Date: February 1, 2012
ASIN: B006T2KUPI
Stand Alone or Series: Prequel to Darkest London Series
Source: eARC through NetGalley.com
Rating: 4/5 stars

I got an advanced reading copy of this story to review through NetGalley(dot)com. This was an excellent prequel to Firelight and I really enjoyed it. If you read Firelight and liked it I highly recommend reading this, as it gives some good background on Miranda and Archer. If you haven't read Firelight this is a good shorter sample of Callihan's work that you can read to see if you want to read Firelight.

This book explains in more detail how Miranda's family lost their fortune and the life Miranda lived after that happened but before she was sent off to Lord Archer. It also explains some of the questing that Lord Archer did in far off lands to try and cure his condition.

Firelight has got to be one of the most wonderful fantasy romances I have ever read. Miranda and Archer have such wonderful chemistry together. You see a little of that in this story. Although this story is more just filling in some of the background we missed out on in Firelight.

This was well-written and had excellent description. On top of that Callihan is excellent at making believable and engaging characters that you can't help but love. Even in this short story we meet some new characters and they are enjoyable to read about and meet.

Overall this is definitely a worthwhile read if you have read Firelight, it is also a worthwhile introduction to Callihan's writing style. I can't wait to see what she comes up with forMoonglow the second Darkest London book.

Early Review - Firelight (Darkest London, Book 1) by Kristen Callihan (4.5/5 stars)

Reading level: Adult
Genre: Historical Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
Size: 400 pages
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: January 31, 2012
ISBN: 978-1455508594
Stand Alone or Series: 1st in the Darkest London series
Source: eGalley from NetGalley.com
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

I got an eGalley of this book to review through NetGalley.com. This book was a wonderful historical fantasy paranormal romance. It was impossible to put down and the two main characters were absolutely awesome. The second book in the Darkest London series is scheduled to release in August 2011 and will be titled Moonglow.

One night when she was younger Miranda meet a strange man in an alley and she has never been able to forget him. Now Miranda is plagued both by her strange ability to call fire and by her father's horrible debt. Miranda is horrified when she finds that he father has sold her off to a nobleman with a reputation for being dangerous and mentally unstable. When Miranda finally meets the masked Lord Archer she sense something familiar about him. She finally realizes Lord Archer is actually the man whom she meet all those years ago. Someone is trying to frame Lord Archer for multiples murders and Miranda ends up in the thick of a magical and mysterious plot.

The two main characters are what hands down makes this book. The witty banter and heat between Miranda and Lord Benjamin Archer is unbelievably well done. Miranda is a Lady yet she has been thieving for her father for some time so she has some..uh..less ladylike skills in sneaking and fighting. She is tough, yet dedicated to those she loves.

Lord Archer is a wonderful male lead. He has that whole masked man thing going on which lends a mysterious and painful aura to his characters. His character channels both a little Phantom of the Opera and a little of the man in black from Princess Bride. He was just an absolutely perfect dark and mysterious male lead.

The heat and chemistry between these two characters (both who are lonely and harboring terrible magical secrets) is absolutely outstanding. I could not put the book down and could not wait to see what would happen next. I actually got goosebumps at points. I just don't know how else to say it; this is one awesome couple and reading about them and seeing how they can work as a team was just wonderful.

The world itself is interesting. It is set in historical London. Magic isn't all that well known. Werewolves are alluded to in the story at one point, but the magic Lord Archer is involved in is more the ritualistic/demonic type. There isn't a ton of world-building, but what is there is well done and easy to understand.

It looks like this is going to be one of those paranormal series where two different characters are featured for each book. This book pretty much wrapped up Miranda and Archer's story completely. The next book looks like it is going to focus on one of Miranda's sisters.

Overall this was an absolutely outstanding read. I couldn't put the book down. The two main characters really make the book; they are just very wonderful characters and the chemistry between them is incredibly well done. The world is interesting but basically just a alternate version of historical London; there is magic present but not a whole lot of paranormal races are discussed. I would recommend this book for fans of the Night Huntressseries; or any other urban fantasy/paranormal series out there featuring a strong heroine and hero with a strong element of romance throughout the story. This book was very well done and I will be curious to see if the follow-up book, Moonglow, can be as awesome.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
- Horror and Urban Fantasy Challenge
- 150+ Books Reading Challenge